22 November 2010

Evelyn's Mother-in-law's Perfectly Textured White Dinner Rolls

We recently had a dinner at church, and ladies could sign up to decorate tables. I thought it would be a great chance to show some of my dishes that I seldom use. These are some blue stoneware I got while I worked at a gift shop for a screaming deal. I have service for almost 16 in it (due to a broken bowl). I collected dishes when I was single, and from that fetish I could probably serve 60+ people if I could scrounge up some silverware to go with my bounteous wares.

At the dinner, Evelyn S. brought the most scrumptious white rolls. Rolls are my assignment for Turkey Day this week, so I called her the next morning for the recipe, and she graciously obliged. I tested it on Sunday to make sure I could re-create it, and I did with success. I halved the recipe, and did half of that batch as cinnamon rolls, which were also a big success. Evelyn said she had to go watch her mother-in-law and measure the dollops, etc. I am indebted to her diligent detective work.

Sprinkle yeast over the water, and let yeast begin to wake up. Sprinkle sugar and salt in. Add shortening, and whisk it to break it up in the water. Knead it all together. Let it rise in an oiled bowl until double in size.

I let it rise while I was at church, but I'm sure it was ready before we got home. Punch dough down, form rolls. Allow to rise again. I let them go probably 20 minutes, but I think they would have been fine with more time.

Bake 25 minutes at 375. Make sure the oven is pre-heated when you put them in. I think for Thursday I will be cooking them at 400, because mine weren't the pretty brown that hers were, so I think my oven doesn't cook as hot.

Note: I sprayed saran wrap with cooking spray instead of using a wet towel to cover my dough this time, and it worked out well because the dough didn't stick to the towel.